Impact force dampening and defusing structure

ABSTRACT

An impact force dampening and defusing structure includes a plurality of components arranged in a grid array. A component has a three-dimensional geometric shape that includes an impact receiving surface area and an impact defusing surface area. The impact defusing surface area is larger than, and a distance “d” from, the impact receiving surface area. The component includes a material composition and, when an impact force strikes the impact receiving surface area of the component and the impact force dampening and defusing structure is in position to protect a body part, the component contributes to reducing pressure on the body part based on the material composition, the distance “d”, the impact receiving surface area, and the impact defusing surface area.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENTS

The present U.S. Utility Patent application claims priority pursuant to35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/375,767,entitled “BODY IMPACT PROTECTION SYSTEM”, filed Aug. 16, 2016, which ishereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and made part ofthe present U.S. Utility Patent application for all purposes.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

NOT APPLICABLE

INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC

NOT APPLICABLE

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Technical Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to impact protection and moreparticularly to a protection system that reduces impact pressureresulting from an impact force.

Description of Related Art

Impact protection devices are known to reduce injury to a body part as aresult of an impact. Most impact protecting devices include an outershell and padding to protect the body part, which may be a limb, ajoint, a portion of a limb, the back, ribs, the chest, the abdomen, theneck, and/or the head. For example, the impact protecting device is ahelmet when the body part is a head.

For most helmets, the outer shell is a rigid material such as plastic,polycarbonate, etc. and the padding includes foam, air bladders, or acombination thereof. Vicis™ makes a football helmet that includes asofter outer shell, a 1½ inch thick core layer, and a foam based formliner.

As is generally accepted in the medical community, a concussion resultsfrom a sudden acceleration or deceleration of the head. Such rapidacceleration and deceleration of the head can result from a car cash orviolent shaking. This medical premise forms the basis for which helmetsare tested. The testing of football helmets and other helmets involvesdropping an headform wearing the helmet from various heights on to aplatform and measuring g-forces from the impact. Thus, helmets aredesigned to pass g-force based testing.

G-force, however, is not a measure of force. It is a measure ofacceleration or deceleration with respect to earth's gravitationalfield. Thus, for an impact, G-force is a measure of how fast the objectdecelerations with respect to the earth's gravity. In equation for,G-Force=a/g, where “g” is gravitational force of 32.2 ft/s² and “a” isthe deceleration of the object from impact, where a=v²/2*d, where “v” isthe velocity at impact and “d” is the impact distance. With G-forcebeing the unit of measure for testing helmets, the only variable inreducing G-Force is impact distance “d”. Thus, increasing impactdistance is the only way to improve G-force based testing result ofhelmets. Accordingly, helmets are designed to increase impact distance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a conventional impactprotection device receiving an impact force;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an example graph of the impact protection deviceof FIG. 1 that plots impact force versus impact area;

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodiment ofa body impact protection system in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodiment ofa defusing cell (i.e., component) of a layer of a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an example offorce dampening and diffusion by a defusing cell (i.e., component) of alayer of a body impact protection system in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram, in a top view, of an embodiment ofa body impact protection system in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an example offorce components within a body impact protection system in accordancewith the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of another exampleof force components within a body impact protection system in accordancewith the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a graph of an example of impact force components v. bodyimpact area of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram, in a top view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of another exampleof force components within a body impact protection system in accordancewith the present invention;

FIGS. 14A-14B are a schematic block diagram of an example of forcedefusing and distribution layer by layer within a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 16A is a graph of an example of an impact force pulse v. time;

FIG. 16B is a graph of an examples of frequency responses of differentlayers of a body impact protection system having different resonantfrequencies in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 17A-17E are a schematic block diagram of an example of forcedefusing and distribution layer by layer within a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 18 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 19 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a defusing cell of a layer of a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 20 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a defusing cell of a layer of a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 21A-21F are a schematic block diagrams, in a top view, of otherembodiments of a defusing cell of a layer of a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 21G-21J-2 are diagrams of another defusing cell or component inaccordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 21K-21N are diagrams of another defusing cell or component inaccordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 21O and 21Q-21S-2 are diagrams of another defusing cell orcomponent in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 21T is a top and side view of a layer of components in accordancewith the present invention;

FIGS. 21U-21V are diagrams of another defusing cell or component inaccordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 21W-21X are diagrams of another defusing cell or component inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 21Y is a side view of a layer of components in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIGS. 21Z-21AB are diagrams of another defusing cell or component inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 21AC is a top view of a layer of components in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 21AD is a top view of a layer of components in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 21AE is a top view of a layer of components in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 21AF is a top view of two overlapping layers of components inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 22 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a layer of a body impact protection system in accordancewith the present invention;

FIG. 23A is a schematic block diagram, in a cross section front view, ofan embodiment of a helmet at the instant of an impact.

FIG. 23B is a schematic block diagram, in a cross section front view, ofan embodiment of a helmet at compression of the padding as result of animpact.

FIG. 23C is a schematic block diagram, in a cross section front view, ofan embodiment of a helmet at movement of the brain within the skull asresult of an impact.

FIG. 23D is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a helmet that includes a body impact protection system in accordancewith the present invention;

FIG. 23E is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of a portion ofan embodiment of a helmet that includes a body impact protection systemin accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 23F is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of a portion ofan embodiment of a helmet that includes a body impact protection systemreceiving an angular impact force in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIG. 23G is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of a portion ofan embodiment of a helmet that includes a body impact protection systemdampening and defusing an angular impact force in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 24A is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a chest protector that includes a body impact protection system inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 24B is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a chest protector that includes a body impact protection system inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 25 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a knee protection apparatus that includes a body impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 26 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a knee protection apparatus that includes a body impactprotection system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 27 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a body impact protection system for use in a knee protectionapparatus in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 28 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a body limb protection apparatus that includes a body impactprotection system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 29A is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 29B is a schematic block diagram, in a top view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 30 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a force defusing inert for use in an impact protection system inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 31 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing inert for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 32 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing inert for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 33 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing inert for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 34 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 35 is a schematic block diagram, in a top view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 36 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 37 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 38 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 39 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 40 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an example offorce diffusion via force defusing layers for use in an impactprotection system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 41 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of another exampleof force diffusion via force defusing layers for use in an impactprotection system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 42 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 43A-43C are schematic block diagrams, in a side view, of examplesof impact force dampening and diffusion via force defusing layers of animpact protection system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 44 is a schematic block diagram, in a top view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 45 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a conventional impactprotection device 5, which may be a helmet, receiving an impact force11. The impact protection device 5 includes an outer surface 7 (e.g., ahard-plastic shell) and padding 9 (e.g., a foam, air bladders, or acombination thereof). For this example, assume that the impactprotection device 5 is a conventional football helmet and the impactforce 11 is causes by a collision with another football helmet.

Given the spherical nature of football helmets, a helmet to helmetcollision creates a small impact area (e.g., about the size of a dime).At impact, the impact force 11 creates a surface shock wave response 15and a normal impact force component 17. The surface shock response 15 isa surface wave at the resonant frequency of the outer surface 7. As apractical example, the impact force 11 creates a wave pattern similar towaves created from a rock being dropped still water.

The normal impact force 17 has a magnitude that is similar to that ofthe impact force 11 and follows a path that corresponds to the outersurface impacted area 13 towards the head (i.e., body part 21). As thenormal impact force 17 is traversing this path, it is dampened by thepadding. A concentration of the dampened normal impact force is assertedagainst the head in a primary body part impact area 19. Throughconventional padding, the primary body part impact area 19 isapproximately the same size as the outer surface impacted area 13.

With conventional football helmets being tested on G-Force measurements,the effectiveness of the padding dictates the tested effectiveness ofthe helmet. G-force testing, however, is an incomplete testing metricfor determining concussion safety of helmets. To illustrate theincompleteness of G-Force measurements, consider a nine-inch huntingknife with a five-inch blade dropped forty-two inches into modeling claywith the blade down and then with the handle down. The following tableshows that the blade down has a G-Force that is about 5 times less thanthe G-Force with the handle down. Using the G-Force measurements ofhelmet testing protocols as an indication of injury prevention, thehandle down presents significantly more risk and severity of injury thanthe blade down.

Measurement Blade Down Handle Down weight 0.3 lbs 0.3 lbs drop height 42inches 42 inches impact distance 0.89 inches 0.18 inches velocity 15.01ft/sec 15.01 ft/sec deceleration 1,519 ft/sec2 7,513 ft/sec2 G-Force 47G's 221 G's average impact force (lbs) 14 lbs 66 lbs average impact area0.032 in2 0.866 in2 average impact pressure 442.4 lbs/in2 76.6 lbs/in2

Yet, when mass, impact force, impact area, and impact pressure are takeninto account, a much clearer picture of the risk and severity of injuryis revealed. From the above table, the blade has a significantly smallerarea than the handle. Even though the blade down has a smaller impactforce, the blade down has a significantly greater impact pressure(almost 6 to 1)! Note that the impact area of the blade is an averageand is significantly smaller at the tip; making the initial impactpressure of the blade even greater (e.g., over 1,000 pounds per squareinch).

Due to the spherical nature of the head, protective headgear is alsospherical. As such, in a helmet-to-helmet impact or helmet-to-groundimpact, the helmet surface impact area 13 is about the size of dime toabout the size of a silver dollar. Preliminary testing indicates thatconventional football helmets do little to expand the impact area fromthe surface of the helmet to the head. Thus, even if a helmet dampensthe impact force by about 97.5%, the impact pressure to the head maystill be substantial.

For example, assume a 200-pound player traveling at 16 miles per hourscollides head first and comes to a complete stop in 1.25 inches. Thiscreates a G-force of 82 g's (which is at the low end of possibleconcussion range of 100 g's+/−30 g's). Continuing the analysis, thisimpact creates an external impact force 11 of about 16,400 force-pounds.Assume the padding reduces the impact force by 96% such that the normalimpact force reaching the head is about 650 force-pounds. If the primarybody impact area 19 is also about the size of a dime (e.g., 0.375 squareinches), then the pressure (e.g., force/area) applied to the head isabout 1,750 pounds per square inch (PSI)! This creates a very largelocalized force being applied to a small area of the head that is likelyto cause a head injury.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an example graph of the impact protection deviceof FIG. 1 that plots impact force versus primary body part impact area.In this example, the vertical axis corresponds to impact force thatreaches the body part and the horizontal axis represents the surfacearea of a body part (e.g., head). The dampened normal impact force 17that reaches the body includes a plurality of impact force componentsdispersed over an area of the body part creating a force gradient. Theforce components with the largest magnitudes are concentrated in theprimary body part impact area. As the distance from the primary bodypart impact area increases, the magnitude of the force componentsrapidly decrease. From this illustration, the impact pressure (i.e.,impact force/impacted area) is large.

To illustrate further illustrate that G-force is an incomplete measureof concussion safety and that impact pressure is a much more accuratemeasure, consider that a standing person turns at a velocity of 2.2feet/second and bumps her head on an edge of a pipe. Assume that theimpact distance is 1/16 inch, the impact area of 1/16 in², and a mass ofher head of 11 pounds. From these values the following metrics areobtained: G-Force of 14.4 g's, an average impact force of 158 pounds,and an average impact pressure of 2,560 PSI. While the g-force was verylow, the pressure was very large, which caused a severe concussion forwhich the person missed weeks of work. As such, when impact forcecomponents are in a small impact area, the pressure can be verysignificant, which can cause severe injury.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodiment ofa body impact protection system 10 that includes an impact forcedampening and defusing structure 14 and an inner layer 12. The innerlayer 12 supports components 16 of the impact force dampening anddefusing structure 14. The components 16 may be of any size (i.e.,height, width, circumference, radius, diameter, perimeter, and/ordepth), any shape, and/or any material composition provided the sidewalls of the components are angled and the outer surface area (i.e.,away from the body part 8) is less than the inner surface area (towardsthe body part 8).

With reference to FIG. 4, a component 16, from a side view, includes anangled side wall(s) 71 (e.g., a side structure), an impact receivingsurface area 70 (e.g., a top that is away from the body part), a bodyimpact surface area 72 (e.g., a base that is towards the body part), anda distance “d” 74. The distance “d” 74 is the distance between the bodyimpact surface area 72 and the impact receiving area 70 and ranges from1/32 of an inch to multiple inches, depending on the application of thebody impact protection system. The angled side wall(s) 71 that is/are atan angle of θ with respect to the horizontal axis, where the angle is inthe range of 25 degrees to 89 degrees. Depending on the angle θ and thedistance “d”, the body impact surface area 72 is two or more timeslarger than the impact receiving surface area 70, where the impactreceiving surface area is 1/256 square inches (e.g., 1/16 by 1/16) totens of square inches depending on the application of the body impactprotection system. Various embodiments and examples of the components 16are described in one or more subsequent figures.

The component 16 is constructed (e.g., molded, press-formed, printed,etc.) of a material composition that includes one or more of a rubbermaterial, a foam material, a padding material, a plastic material, a gelmaterial, a carbon fiber material, a cloth material; a polyestermaterial, a moisture absorbing material, a moisture wicking material anda silicon material. A characteristic of the material composition is thatthe component retains the angle θ within +/−33% and retains the ratio ofAi to Ao to within +/−33%. Distance “d” may decrease while the impactforce is being applied, but substantially returns to its pre-impactforce value when the impact force is removed.

Returning to the discussion of FIG. 3, the inner layer 12 provides asupporting structure for the components 16 and provides some dampeningof the impact force 18. The inner layer 12 is comprised of rubber, foam,air bladder, corrugated fiberboard pads, a plastic material, a gelmaterial, a carbon fiber material, a cloth material, a polyestermaterial, a moisture absorbing material, a moisture wicking material, anexpanding polystyrene, a polypropylene, a polyethylene, a polyurethane,a rubber, a silicon, and/or a gel. In one example embodiment, thecomponents 16 are adhered to the inner layer 12 by an adhesive, bymolding, by three-dimensional printing, and/or other means. In anotherexample embodiment, the inner layer 12 includes receptacles in which theinner surface area of the components is placed with or without anadhesive. In both examples, the components 16 on the same layer moveindependently from each other as a result of an impact force 18.

In an example, the body impact protection system 10 is protecting a bodypart 8 (e.g., head, a limb, the core, etc.) from an impact force 18created by an impacting object (e.g., another person's head, elbow,shoulder, etc., from the ground, from a ball, from a projectile, etc.).The impacting object strikes the outer surface area (or portion thereof)of one or more components creating an average impact force 18 over asystem impact area 20. The average impact force 18 includes a pluralityof impact force components distributed across the system impact area 20.

Based on the nature of impact, some of the impact force components willhave a magnitude that is greater than the magnitude of the averageimpact force. For example, in a sphere to sphere impact, the impactforce components in the middle of the impact area will have greatermagnitudes than impact force components are at the perimeter of theimpact area. As another example, in a flat surface to flat surfaceimpact, the impact force components across impact area will have aboutthe same magnitudes.

The component(s) 16 receiving the average impact force 18 dampens anddefuses it. A component dampens the average impact force 18 based on theangle of the side walls and defuses it based on the difference betweenthe outside surface area and the inside surface area. With reference toFIG. 5, the component dampens the average impact force 18 (F1) based onthe sine of the angle θ. For example, of the angle θ is 45 degrees, thenthe impact force is dampened by sin θ=0.707. As such, the resultingaverage impact force (F2)=F1*sin θ, which, in the present example, isF2=0.707*F1.

Impact pressure is “impact force” divided by impact area. For the outersurface, the impact pressure is F1/Ao, where Ao is the outer surfacearea and, for the inner surface, the impact pressure is F2/Ai, where Aiis the inner surface area. Continuing with the example, if Ai is 9 timesAo, then the inner impact pressure is 0.707/9 (7.8%) of the outer impactpressure via just one cell or component.

FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram, in a top view, of an embodiment ofa body impact protection system 10 that includes the inner layer 12supporting a plurality of components 16 forming an impact forcedampening and defusing structure 14. The components 16 are shown to havea conical shape and are all of the same size and shape. In otherembodiments, the components have a shape other than conical and/or areof different sized and/or of different shapes. In another embodiment, afill material is injected, sprayed, placed, etc. between the components16. The fill material is softer that the material of the component(i.e., the fill material will compress more from an impact force thanthe component), which includes one or more of a gel, foam, etc.

In an example, the impact force impacts three components 16 having asystem impact area 20. Each of the three components dampens theirrespective portion based on the side wall angle θ, the materialcomposition of the component, and/or the distance “d”. Each componentfurther diffuses the dampened impact by spreading it over a larger area.In this example, the body part impact area 22 is significantly largerthan the system impact area 20. As such, the pressure applied to thebody part is significantly less that the pressure exerted in the systemimpact area 20.

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system 10 that is similar to thebody impact protection system 10 of FIG. 3 with the addition of an outerlayer 24. The outer layer 24 may be comprised on the same material asthe inner layer 12 or a different material. Each of the inner and outerlayers 12 and 24 are 1/16 inch to ¾ inch thick depending on theapplication of the body impact protection system 10.

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an example offorce components within a body impact protection system 10. In thisexample, the body impact protection system 10 includes an inner layer12, an impact force dampening and defusing structure 14, and an outerlayer 24. The impact force dampening and defusing structure includes oneor more layers of components 16 and the inner layer 12 is positionedproximal to a body part 8.

When on object (e.g., another person, a ball, the ground, etc.) collideswith the body impact protection system 10, it creates an average impactforce 18 over a system impact area 20. The average impact force 18 iscalculated as F=KE/d, where KE is the kinetic energy at impact and d isthe impact distance (i.e., the distance the object travels at the momentof the collision until it stops or the collision is over). The kineticenergy (KE) is calculated as KE=0.5*m*v², where m is the mass of theobject and v is the velocity of the impact at the instant of collision.For a falling object, velocity (v) is calculated as v=(2*g*h)^(1/2),where g is the gravitational field of earth and his the height theobject has fallen. Deceleration of the object is calculated as a=v²/2*dand the G-Force of the object is calculated as G=a/g.

The components of the impact force dampening and defusing structure 14provide a collision angle 26 between the impact force 18 and the bodypart 8. The impact force 18 is divided into a normal force component 28and a tangential force component 30 based on the collision angle 26(e.g., θ). For example, and on a layer by layer basis, the normal forcecomponent 28 is equal to the impact force times the sine of thecollision angle and the tangential force component 30 is equal to theimpact force times the cosine of the collision angle.

In addition to dampening the impact force on a layer by layer basis, thecollision angle 26 increases the impacted area. Thus, when the normalforce component(s) 28 is applied to the body part 8 through the innerlayer 12, its magnitude is substantially less than the magnitude of theimpact force 18 and it is spread out over a much larger area (i.e., thebody part impact area 22 is much larger than the system impact area 20).Since pressure is force over area, decreasing the force and increasingthe area substantially reduces the impact pressure on the body. In ananalogy, the body impact protection system 10 takes a hard punch andturns it into a mild slap. As another analogy and from the example ofthe knife being dropped into molding clay, the body impact protectionsystem 10 takes the blade down scenario and converts it into the handledown scenario.

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of another exampleof force components within a body impact protection system 10. In thisexample, the body impact protection system 10 includes an inner layer12, an impact force dampening and defusing structure 14, and an outerlayer 24. The impact force dampening and defusing structure includes onelayer of components 16 and the inner layer 12 is positioned proximal toa body part 8.

When on object 21 (e.g., a ball) collides with the body impactprotection system 10, it creates an average impact force 18 over asystem impact area 20. As a result of the impact force 18, an outersurface shock response or wave 23 is created within the outer layer 24.The magnitude and energy of the outer surface shock response isdependent on the material of the outer layer 24 and the impact force 18.A majority of the energy of the impact force 18, however, will beconcentrated in the system impact area 20 and directed toward the bodypart. As an analogy, consider a rock dropped into a still pond. The rockcreates a rippling wave on the surface of the pond (i.e., an impactshock response or wave), but the rock continues to fall to the bottom ofthe pond. In this analogy, the rock is the impact force and the surfaceof the pond is the outer layer.

In this example, the system impact area 20 corresponds to the outer ortop area of a component or cell of the impact force dampening anddefusing structure 14. As such, a majority of the impact force 18 isapplied to one cell. The cell functions to convert the impact force 18into an angular force 25. When the angular force 25 reaches the innerlayer 12, it creates a normal force component 28 and a tangential forcecomponent 30. Depending on the material of the inner layer 12, theangular force 25 may also create a shock wave 27 in the inner layer 12.For example, if the inner layer includes a combination of padding and anon-malleable to semi-malleable plastic or the like, then a surface wavewould be created in the plastic portion.

In addition, the cell creates a body part impact area 22 that is larger(e.g., 2× or more) than the system impact area 20 via the angular force25. Note that the body part impact area 22 would be even larger if theimpacting object 21 impacted the system 10 between cells. In thisinstance, two or more cells would share the impact force 18 andrespective create angular forces and collectively form a larger bodypart impact area 22.

FIG. 10 is a graph of an example of impact force components v. bodyimpact area of a body impact protection system. In this example, thevertical axis corresponds to force in force-pounds and the horizontalaxis corresponds to a body part surface area. The thicker darker linescorrespond to the body impact protection system 10 and the thinnerlighter lines corresponds to conventional protective gear.

For the body impact protection system 10, the impact force reaching thebody is spread out over a larger area of the body and has lowermagnitudes in comparison to the conventional protective gear. As such,the pressure applied to the body is less with the body impact protectionsystem 10 than conventional protective gear.

FIGS. 11 and 12 are schematic block diagrams, in a side view and a topview, of another embodiment of a body impact protection system 10 thatincludes two component layers 50 and 54, an intermediate layer 52, andan inner layer 12. The components of the first layer 50 are positionedto overlap (from the top view) two or more components of the secondlayer 54. The components 16 of both layers 50 and 54 may be of the samesize, shape, and material composition, of different size, of differentshape, and/or of different material composition, or a combinationthereof. The intermediate layer 52 and the inner layer 12 may be of thesame size, shape, and material composition, of different size, ofdifferent shape, and/or of different material composition, or acombination thereof.

For example, the first component layer 50 will be subjected to a greaterimpact force than the second component layer 54. As such, the components16 of the first layer have a more rigid material composition (i.e., ableto withstand a large impact force) than the components of the secondlayer. As an optional addition, the components of the first layer have alarger side wall angle θ (i.e., larger sine value) than the componentsof the second layer such that the components of the second layer providemore dampening of the impact force than the components of the firstlayer.

When an impact force 18 is applied to the first component layer 50, oneor more components 16 are impacted. The component(s) 16 of the firstlayer (e.g., the darker component of the first layer) dampen and defusethe impact force 18, which is then applied to the intermediate layer 52.Depending on the material composition of the intermediate layer 52, thedampened and defused impact force is applied to a group of components ofthe second layer 54.

As an example, the intermediate layer 52 is composed of a foam materialthat has a high dampening ratio and a low rigidity factor (i.e., theintermediate layer further dampens the impact force but does little todistribute it over a larger area than the receiving area). In thisexample, the group of components of the second layer 54 would be theones having a direct overlap with the impacted component(s) of the firstlayer 50, which are shown as darkened cells.

As another example, the intermediate layer 52 is composed of a rigidmaterial (e.g., plastic, carbon fiber, etc.) that has a low dampeningratio and a high rigidity factor (i.e., the intermediate layer doeslittle to further dampen the impact force but does distribute it over alarger area than the receiving area). In this example, the group ofcomponents of the second layer 54 would be the ones having a directoverlap with the impacted component(s) of the first layer 50 and anothercircle of components surrounding them having indirect overlap, which areshown as darker cells. In another example, the intermediate layer 52includes a combination of foam material and rigid material.

In another example, each component layer includes components arranged ina grid array (e.g., arranged in rows and columns, arranged in arepeating pattern, randomly arranged, etc. provide that, from layer tolayer, the components of an outer layer overlap multiple components ofan inner layer). Each of the components has a three-dimensionalgeometric shape that includes an impact receiving surface area and animpact defusing surface area that are separated by a distance “d”. Eachof the components further includes a material composition that is thesame or different from component to component or layer to layer. Thisexample or other examples, further include an impact surface layer(e.g., an outer layer) juxtaposed to the impact receiving surface areaof the components and an impact defusing surface layer (e.g., anintermediate and/or inner layer) juxtaposed to the impact defusingsurface area of the components.

FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of another exampleof force components within a body impact protection system 10 that issimilar to FIG. 9 but with the addition of the intermediate layer 52 andthe first component layer 50. In this example, when on object 21 (e.g.,a ball) collides with the body impact protection system 10, it createsan average impact force 18 over a system impact area 20. As a result ofthe impact force 18, an outer surface shock response or wave 23 iscreated within the outer layer 24. The magnitude and energy of the outersurface shock response is dependent on the material of the outer layer24 and the impact force 18. A majority of the energy of the impact force18, however, will be concentrated in the system impact area 20 anddirected toward the body part.

In this example, the impact force is applied the outer or top area of acomponent or cell of the first layer 50. As such, a majority of theimpact force 18 is applied to one cell. The cell functions to convertthe impact force 18 into an angular force 25-1. When the angular force25-1 reaches the intermediate layer 52, it creates a normal forcecomponent 28-1 and a tangential force component 30-1. Depending on thematerial of the intermediate layer 52, the angular force 25-1 may alsocreate a shock wave (or response) 33 in the intermediate layer 52.

The normal force components 28-1 are applied to two cells of the secondlayer 54. As such, each cell receives about one-half of the normalimpact force component produced by the first layer 50. Each of the cellfunctions to convert the normal impact force component 28-1 into asecond angular force 25-2. When the second angular force 25-2 reachesthe inner layer 12, it creates second normal force components 28-2 andsecond tangential force components 30-2. Depending on the material ofthe inner layer 12, the second angular force 25-2 may also create asecond shock wave (or response) 27 in the inner layer 12.

In addition, the cells of the second layer 54 creates a body part impactarea 22 that is significantly larger (e.g., 10× or more) than the systemimpact area 20 via the angular forces 25-1 and 25-2. Note that the bodypart impact area 22 would be even larger if the impacting object 21impacted the system 10 between cells. In this instance, two or morecells of the first layer 50 would share the impact force 18 andrespective create angular forces and collectively form a larger impactarea being exerted on the intermediate layer 52 and engage morecomponents of the second layer 54.

FIGS. 14A-14B are a schematic block diagram of an example of an impactforce being defused and distributed layer by layer within a body impactprotection system 10. From a top view perspective and as shown in FIG.14A, the outer (or top) surfaces of four components 16 of the firstlayer 50 receive the impact force in the system impact area 20. Thecomponents of the first layer are arranged in a pattern 56.

The second layer 54 of components includes a second pattern ofcomponents 58 that is complimentary to the first pattern of components56. In particular, a component of the first layer overlaps multiplecomponents of the second layer such that, from layer to layer, more andmore components are dampening and defusing the impact force. In FIG.14B, eight components or cells of the second layer are receiving aportion of the normalized impact force created by the four components orcells of the first layer. The base of the eight cells of the secondlayer form the body part impact area 22, which is significantly largerthan the system impact area 20.

FIG. 15 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system 10 that includes an innerlayer 12, an outer layer 24, a plurality of component layers 50, 54,60-64 (five in this example, but could be more or less than five); and aplurality of intermediate layers 52, 66-70 (four in this example, butcould be more or less). The first component layer 50 includes aplurality of components arranged in a first pattern; the secondcomponent layer 54 includes a plurality of components arranged in asecond pattern; the third component layer 60 includes a plurality ofcomponents arranged in a third pattern; the fourth component layer 62includes a plurality of components arranged in a fourth pattern; and thefifth component layer 64 includes a plurality of components arranged ina fifth pattern. From layer to layer, the pattern of components is atleast partially complimentary such that one component of an outer layeroverlaps, or overlays, multiple components of an inner layer.

From layer to layer, the size, shape, side wall angle θ, and/or materialcomposition of the components may be different. For example, first layer50, which is the outer most layer of components, has components that arecomprised of a material that can withstand impact force pulses up to50,000 force-pounds of force for 20-100 milliseconds (mSec). Continuingwith the example, the side wall angle of the components of the firstlayer is 45 degrees, such that the normal force produced by the firstlayer of components is 0.0707 of the external impact force. As such, theimpact force being exerted by the first layer of components on the firstintermediate layer 52 will be 0.707*50,000 pounds, which equals 35,350force-pounds.

Continuing with the example, the first intermediate layer 52 has a lowdampening ratio and a high rigidity factor such that a majority of theimpact force received from the first layer of components is provided tocomponents of the second layer. In this example, the side wall angle ofthe components of the second layer is 42.5 degrees, such that the normalforce produced by the second layer of components is 0.676 of the impactforce it receives. As such, the impact being exerted by the second layerof components in the second intermediate layer 66 is 0.676*35,350, whichequals 23,880 force-pounds.

Continuing with the example, the second intermediate layer 66 has a lowdampening ratio and a high rigidity factor such that a majority of theimpact force received from the second layer of components is provided tocomponents of the third layer. In this example, the side wall angle ofthe components of the third layer is 40 degrees, such that the normalforce produced by the third layer of components is 0.643 of the impactforce it receives. As such, the impact being exerted by the third layerof components in the third intermediate layer 68 is 0.643*23,880, whichequals 15,350 force-pounds.

Continuing with the example, the third intermediate layer 68 has a lowdampening ratio and a high rigidity factor such that a majority of theimpact force received from the third layer of components is provided tocomponents of the fourth layer. In this example, the side wall angle ofthe components of the fourth layer is 35 degrees, such that the normalforce produced by the third layer of components is 0.536 of the impactforce it receives. As such, the impact being exerted by the fourth layerof components in the fourth intermediate layer 68 is 0.574*15,350, whichequals 8,804 force-pounds.

Continuing with the example, the third intermediate layer 68 has a lowdampening ratio and a high rigidity factor such that a majority of theimpact force received from the third layer of components is provided tocomponents of the fourth layer. In this example, the side wall angle ofthe components of the fourth layer is 35 degrees, such that the normalforce produced by the fourth layer of components is 0.536 of the impactforce it receives. As such, the impact being exerted by the fourth layerof components in the fourth intermediate layer 68 is 0.574*15,350, whichequals 8,804 force-pounds.

Continuing with the example, the fourth intermediate layer 68 has a lowdampening ratio and a high rigidity factor such that a majority of theimpact force received from the fourth layer of components is provided tocomponents of the fifth layer. In this example, the side wall angle ofthe components of the fifth layer is 30 degrees, such that the normalforce produced by the fifth layer of components is 0.500 of the impactforce it receives. As such, the impact being exerted by the fifth layerof components in the inner layer 12 is 0.500*8,804, which equals 4,402force-pounds.

Continuing with the example, the inner layer 12 has a high dampeningratio (e.g., 0.55) and a low rigidity factor. As such, 0.55 of theimpact force exerted on the inner layer is passed to the body part. Inthis example, the body part would receive an average impact force of0.55*4,402, which equals 2,421 force pounds. The resulting impact forceis spread out over the body impact area to produce an impact pressure.For instance, a body impact area of 5.5 square inches yields a pressureof 440 PSI (pounds per square inch).

In this example, the components of the first layer will need towithstand impact forces of up to 50,000 force pounds; the components ofthe second layer will need to withstand an impact force of 35,350force-pounds; the components of the third layer will need to withstandan impact force of 23,880 force-pounds; the components of the fourthlayer will need to withstand an impact force of 15,350 force-pounds; andthe components of the fifth layer will need to withstand an impact forceof 8,804 force-pounds.

To reduce the impact force and impact pressure being exerted on the bodyof the above example, additional layers can be added. For example, byadding three more layers, each having components with side wall anglesof 30 degrees, then the body impact force is further reduced by 0.5³,which equals 0.125. With the additional three layers, the resultingimpact force being applied to the inner layer 12 is 0.125*4,402, whichequals 550 force pounds. With the inner layer 12 having a dampeningfactor of 0.55, the body impact force is 302.5 force-pounds. With a bodyimpact area of 5.5 square inches, the resulting body impact pressure is55 PSI.

Another way to reduce the impact force and impact pressure being exertedon the body of the above example is to have the intermediate layers havea high dampening ratio (e.g., 0.67). With four intermediate layers, thecumulative dampening is 0.67⁴, which equals 0.2. Thus, the impact forcebeing applied to the inner layer is 0.2*4,402, which equals 887force-pounds. With the inner layer 12 having a dampening factor of 0.55,the body impact force is 487 force-pounds. With a body impact area of5.5 square inches, the resulting body impact pressure is 89 PSI.

FIG. 16A is a graph of an example of an impact force pulse v. time. Inthis example, the vertical axis is acceleration in G-forces (G), whereG-Force is a measure of acceleration with respect to earth'sgravitational field. For instance, G=a/g, where a is acceleration and gis the earth's gravitational field. The horizontal axis is time scaledin mSec. The example further includes an impact pulse that has amagnitude of about −50 G and has a pulse duration of about 10 mSec.

FIG. 16B is a graph of an examples of frequency responses of differentlayers (e.g., layers of components, the intermediate layers, the outerlayer, and/or the inner layer) of a body impact protection system havingdifferent resonant frequencies. In this example, the vertical axis isacceleration in G-forces (G) and the horizontal axis is time scaled inmSec.

By varying the material composition of the layers, various resonantfrequencies are obtained. With different resonant frequencies, differentshock responses are produced. With proper selection of the resonant (ornatural) frequencies, the resulting different shock responsesdestructively interfere with each other to further reduce the impactforce being exerted on the body. In this example, a first layer has afirst shock response, a second layer has a second shock response, and athird layer has a third shock response.

In addition to selecting the resonant or natural frequency of thevarious layers, the quality factor (Q) can be selected. With a higherquality factor, side bands dampen faster, but the main frequency passessubstantially unattenuated. With a low-quality factor, the side bandsdampen slower, but the main frequency is somewhat attenuated (e.g.,reduced by 10% or more).

FIGS. 17A-17E are a schematic block diagram of an example of forcedefusing and distribution layer by layer within a body impact protectionsystem 10 of FIG. 15. With reference to FIG. 17A, the 1^(st) componentlayer 50 receives the impact force via one component or cell. As such,the system impact area 20 corresponds to the area of the top or outersurface area of the component. The component functions to dampen anddefuse the received impact force based on the side wall angle θ and thedistance “d” of the component (e.g., the distance between the topsurface area and the bottom surface area of the component).

With the patterns between the layers being complimentary, the impactedcomponent on the first layer 50 overlaps three components of the secondlayer as shown in FIG. 17B. Ideally, the force exerted by the componentof the first layer 50 is equally distributed among the three componentsof the second layer 54. Each of the components of the second layerfunction to dampen and defuse the received impact force based on theside wall angle θ and the distance “d” of the component.

FIG. 17C illustrates seven components of the third layer 60 receiving animpact force component from the three components of the second layer 54.Each of the seven components of the third layer function to dampen anddefuse the received impact force based on the side wall angle θ and thedistance “d” of the component.

FIG. 17D illustrates twelve components of the fourth layer 62 receivingan impact force component from the seven components of the third layer60. Each of the twelve components of the fourth layer function to dampenand defuse the received impact force based on the side wall angle θ andthe distance “d” of the component.

FIG. 17E illustrates nineteen components of the fifth layer 64 receivingan impact force component from the twelve components of the fourth layer62. Each of the nineteen components of the fifth layer function todampen and defuse the received impact force based on the side wall angleθ and the distance “d” of the component. The body impact area 24 is thesum of the area of the base of the nineteen components. As an example,the base of a component has an area that is nine times the area of thetop of the component. For this example, the body part impact area 24 is9*19 times larger than the system impact area 20 (as shown in FIG. 17A),which is 171 times larger. As such, the resulting impact pressureapplied to the body is up to 171 times less than in conventionalprotection gear, assuming comparable force dampening ratios.

FIG. 18 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a body impact protection system that includes a pluralityof component layers, a plurality of rigid layers, and a plurality ofpadding layers. This example includes three groupings of two componentlayers, three rigid layers, and one padding layers. In a grouping, thetwo component layers are sandwiched between the three rigid layers. Thepadding layer is on the dampening and defusing side of the componentlayers.

The number of each layer type can vary from the numbers shown in thisexample and may be in different layering configurations. For example,the body impact protection system could include two or four groupings.In another example, the body impact protection system includes threecomponent layers and four rigid layers in a grouping. In yet anotherexample, the body impact protection system includes three componentlayers and two rigid layers in a grouping, where one rigid layer is onthe impact receiving side of the three component layers and the otherrigid layer is on the dampening and defusing side of the componentlayers. In yet a further example, the body impact protection system doesnot include rigid layers, it only includes component layers and paddinglayers. In a still further example, the body impact protection systemincludes only component layers and rigid layers. These are but a fewexamples of the almost endless combination of component layers, rigidlayers, and/or padding layers.

FIG. 19 is a schematic block diagram, in a cross-section side view, ofanother embodiment of a defusing cell or component of a layer of a bodyimpact protection system. The cell includes a top surface 70-1, a basesurface 72-1, a side structure 76, and a distance “d” 74 that is thedistance between the top surface and the base surface. In thisembodiment, the center of the cell is hollow and the top and base areopen. The side structure 76 is angled from the base surface to the topsurface at the side wall angle θ and has a thickness such that thecomponent, or cell, includes an outer shell and an interior volume. Theinterior volume can be filled with air, a gel, an oil, rubber, silicon,and/or foam. The component or cell is comprised of a materialcomposition (as previously described) that, when an impact force isapplied, retains the angle θ within +/−33% and retains the ratio of Aito Ao to within +/−33%.

FIG. 20 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a defusing cell or component of a layer of a body impactprotection system. The cell includes a top surface 70-1, a base surface72-1, a side structure 76, and a distance “d” 74 that is the distancebetween the top surface and the base surface. In this embodiment, thecenter of the cell is hollow. The side structure 76 is angled from thebase surface to the top surface at the side wall angle θ. Each of thetop surface 70-1, the base surface 72-1, and the side structure 76 has athickness such that the component, or cell, includes an outer shell andan interior volume. The interior volume can be filled with air, a gel,an oil, rubber, silicon, and/or foam. The component or cell is comprisedof a material composition (as previously described) that, when an impactforce is applied, retains the angle θ within +/−33% and retains theratio of Ai to Ao to within +/−33%.

FIGS. 21A-21F are a schematic block diagrams, in a top view, of otherembodiments of a defusing cell of a layer of a body impact protectionsystem. Each of the defusing cells or components includes a topperimeter that outlines the top surface area and a base perimeter thatoutlines the base surface area. The top surface area is the impact forcereceiving surface and the base surface area is the dampening anddefusing side.

FIG. 21A illustrates the defusing cell or component having a circularshape from a top perspective. As such, the top perimeter 80 and thebottom perimeter 82 each have a circular shape. The radius of the bottomperimeter 82 is at least 1.414 times the radius of the top perimeter 80such that the base surface area is at least 2 times the surface area ofthe top surface area. With a circular shape for the top and baseperimeters, the cell or component has a conical shape.

FIG. 21B illustrates the defusing cell or component having an ellipticalor oval shape from a top perspective. As such, the top perimeter 80-1and the bottom perimeter 82-1 each have an elliptical or oval shape. Thedimensions of the bottom perimeter 82-1 and of the top perimeter 80-1are selected such that the base surface area is at least 2 times thesurface area of the top surface area. With an elliptical or oval shapefor the top and base perimeters, the cell or component has an ellipticalor oval conical shape.

FIG. 21C illustrates the defusing cell or component having a squareshape from a top perspective. As such, the top perimeter 80-2 and thebottom perimeter 82-2 each have a square shape. The dimensions of thebottom perimeter 82-2 and of the top perimeter 80-2 are selected suchthat the base surface area is at least twice the surface area of the topsurface area. With a square shape for the top and base perimeters, thecell or component has a pyramid shape.

FIG. 21D illustrates the defusing cell or component having a rectangularshape from a top perspective. As such, the top perimeter 80-3 and thebottom perimeter 82-3 each have a rectangular shape. The dimensions ofthe bottom perimeter 82-3 and of the top perimeter 80-3 are selectedsuch that the base surface area is at least twice the surface area ofthe top surface area. With a rectangular shape for the top and baseperimeters, the cell or component has an elongated pyramid shape.

FIG. 21E illustrates the defusing cell or component having a triangularshape from a top perspective. As such, the top perimeter 80-4 and thebottom perimeter 82-4 each have a triangular shape. The dimensions ofthe bottom perimeter 82-4 and of the top perimeter 80-4 are selectedsuch that the base surface area is at least twice the surface area ofthe top surface area. With a triangular shape for the top and baseperimeters, the cell or component has a three-dimensional triangularshape.

FIG. 21F illustrates the defusing cell or component having an octagonshape from a top perspective. As such, the top perimeter 80-5 and thebottom perimeter 82-5 each have an octagon shape. The dimensions of thebottom perimeter 82-5 and of the top perimeter 80-5 are selected suchthat the base surface area is at least twice the surface area of the topsurface area. With an octagon shape for the top and base perimeters, thecell or component has a three-dimensional octagon shape.

FIGS. 21A-21F are a few examples of the possible shapes of thecomponents or defusing cell. Other examples include a pentagon shape, ahexagon shape, and/or other polygon shape. As another example, the topperimeter could be one shape and the base perimeter could be anothershape.

FIGS. 21G-21J-2 are diagrams of another defusing cell or component. Thedefusing cell or component has a substantially square or rectangularshaped top perimeter 80-6 and base perimeter 82-6 with a hole runningthe distance “d” through the middle. The base perimeter 82-6 has angularcut corners (e.g., at θ₂), has a width of “w”, and a height of “h”. Thetop perimeter 80-6 has a width of “w1” and a height of “h1”. The topsurface area outlined by the top perimeter 80-6 is the distance “d” fromthe base surface area outlined by the base perimeter 82-6. The sidewalls of the cell are angled at the side wall angle of θ₁, where θ₁ isreadily calculable from w, h, w1, h1, and d, or d is readily calculablefrom w, h, w1, h1, and θ₁.

The hole at the top surface has a width of “w2” and a height of “h2”. Inan example, the hole runs straight through the cell as shown in thecross-sectional side view of FIG. 21J-1. In another example, the holeincreases in sizes as it traverses from the top surface to the basesurface of the cell as shown in the cross-sectional side view of FIG.21J-2. The combination of the hole and the angled corners of the basesurface allow air flow from layer to layer.

FIGS. 21K-21N are diagrams of another defusing cell or component that issimilar to the cell of FIGS. 21G-21J-2 with the addition of perforationholes or vents to improve air flow and/or reduce weight of the cell. Theperforation holes or vents may be circular, rectangular, square, orother polygon shape and pass through the cell from the top surface tothe bottom surface. Alternatively, some or all of the perforation holesdo not pass fully from the top surface to the base surface. These holesmay only pass 50%-90% of the way through the cell to reduce weight.

FIGS. 21O and 21Q-21S-2 are diagrams of another defusing cell orcomponent. The defusing cell or component has, from a top perspective, asubstantially square or rectangular shaped top perimeter 80-6 and baseperimeter 82-6 with a hole running the distance “d” through the middle.From the side view and/or the front view, the defusing cell or componenthas an arch shape, which allows for a layer of such cells to be fittedto a curved and/or spherical shaped body part. Note that the cell mayonly have on arched perspective from the side or front view.

The base perimeter 82-7 has angular cut corners (e.g., at θ₂), has awidth of “w”, and a height of “h”. The top perimeter 80-7 has a width of“w1” and a height of “h1”. The top surface area outlined by the topperimeter 80-7 is the distance “d” from the base surface area outlinedby the base perimeter 82-7. The side walls of the cell are angled at theside wall angle of θ₁, where θ₁ is readily calculable from w, h, w1, h1,and d, or d is readily calculable from w, h, w1, h1, and θ₁.

The hole at the top surface has a width of “w2” and a height of “h2”. Inan example, the hole runs straight through the cell as shown in thecross-sectional side view of FIG. 21S-1. In another example, the holeincreases in sizes as it traverses from the top surface to the basesurface of the cell as shown in the cross-sectional side view of FIG.21S-2. The combination of the hole and the angled corners of the basesurface allow air flow from layer to layer.

As shown in FIGS. 21S-1 and 21S-2, the arced perspective includes aninner radius r₁ and an outer radius r₂. The inner radius r₁ is dependenton the radius of the body part it is protecting, the inner layerthickness, the layer in which the cell lies, the distance “d” betweenthe top and base surface areas, and the thickness of any intermediatelayers. The outer radius r₂ is dependent on the inner radius r₁ and thedistance “d” between the top and base surface areas. For example, assumethat the body part being protected is the head with a radius of 3inches, the inner layer is 0.25 inches thick, the cell is in the secondlayer, the intermediate layer is 0.125 inches thick, and “d” is 0.125inches. Based on these parameters, the inner radius r₁ is(3+0.25+0.125+0.125)=3.5 inches and the outer radius r₂ is 3.625 inches.

FIG. 21T is a top and side view of a layer of components or cells asshown in FIGS. 21G-21J-2. The layer includes a plurality of componentsand a component layer support. The component layer support functions toalign the components and may further function to provide some dampeningof the impact force. For example, the component layer support iscomprised of a rubber material that includes locating holes, slots,and/or other aligning mechanisms for positioning the cells, orcomponents. With the use of a rubber material, the component layersupport has a degree of flexibility to allow for custom fitting of thelayers and further provides dampening of the impact force. In anembodiment, the component layer support is an intermediate layer aspreviously described.

FIGS. 21U-21V are diagrams of another defusing cell or component 16 thatincludes a plurality of spherical elements 85, a suspension material 87,and a housing 89. The housing 89 has an overall size and shapecorresponding to one of the components previously described. Thespherical elements 85 are comprised of a material composition that willsubstantially maintain a spherical shape (e.g., up to 25% compression)when an impact force is exerted on the cell. For example, the sphericalelements are comprised of a rubber material, a plastic material,stainless steel, aluminum, and/or a carbon fiber material. The sphericalelements 85 may be solid or hollow.

The suspension material 87 may be a liquid and/or a solid that, when noforce is applied to the cell, keeps the spherical elements 85 in adistributed pattern. When a force is applied to the cell, the suspensionmaterial 87 allows the spherical elements 85 to come in contact witheach other and propagate the impact force through the colliding spheresand provide a fairly even distribution of the resulting dampened anddefused impact force across the base surface area. When the force isremoved, the suspension material 87 causes the spherical elements 85 toreturn to the distributed pattern.

FIGS. 21W-21X are side view diagrams of another defusing cell orcomponent that include a flexible shell 99 and a cell platform 101. Eachof the flexible shell 99 and cell platform 101 is comprised of amaterial composition that includes a rubber material, a plasticmaterial, stainless steel, aluminum, and/or a carbon fiber material. Thebase of the flexible shell 99 fits within the cell platform 101 and isheld within the cell platform via the encircling lip 103.

When no force is exerted on the cell, as shown in FIG. 21W, the flexibleshell 99 is uncompressed and is not pushing on the encircling lip 103 ofthe cell platform 101. When an impact force is exerted on the cell, asshown in FIG. 21X, the flexible shell 99 is compressed and its edges arecontained with the cell platform 101 via the encircling lip 103. Thematerial composition of the flexible shell 99 is such that it canwithstand the impact force, be compressed as shown in FIG. 21X, retainedits shape (e.g., maintains a side wall angle), and substantially returnsto the uncompressed state as shown in FIG. 21W when the force isremoved.

In an example, the flexible shell 99 has a side wall angle of θu when itin the uncompressed state and has a side wall angle of θc when in thecompress state. For instance, θu is 45 degrees and θc is 35 degrees.

FIG. 21Y is a side view of layers 103 of flexible cells or components.The cells are compressible cells as discussed with reference to FIGS.21W and 21X. Intermediate layers 105 are between one or more flexiblecell layers 103. In this example, intermediate layers 105 are betweenthe second and third flexible cell layers 103 and between the fourth andfifth flexible cell layers 103.

FIGS. 21Z-21AB are top, front, and side view diagrams of anotherdefusing cell or component that has a triangular shape. The cell may beof any size (i.e., height, width, perimeter, and/or distance between thetop and base surfaces) and/or of any material composition provided theside walls of the components are angled and the top surface area is lessthan the base surface area.

The distance “d” between the top surface area and the base surface arearanges from 1/32 of an inch to multiple inches, depending on theapplication of the body impact protection system. The angled sidewall(s) are at an angle of θ with respect to the horizontal axis, wherethe angle is in the range of 25 degrees to 89 degrees. Depending on theangle θ and the distance “d”, the base surface area is two or more timeslarger than the top surface area, where the top surface area is 1/256square inches to tens of square inches depending on the application ofthe body impact protection system.

The cell is constructed (e.g., molded, press-formed, printed, etc.) of amaterial composition that includes one or more of a rubber material, afoam material, a padding material, a plastic material, a gel material, acarbon fiber material, a cloth material; a polyester material, amoisture absorbing material, a moisture wicking material and a siliconmaterial. A characteristic of the material composition is that the cellretains the angle θ within +/−33% and retains the ratio of Ai (i.e., thebase surface area) to Ao (i.e., the top surface area) to within +/−33%.Distance “d” may decrease while the impact force is being applied, butsubstantially returns to its pre-impact force value when the impactforce is removed.

FIG. 21AC is a top view of a layer of the triangular components of FIGS.21Z-21AB. With the triangular shape of the cells, the layer can beformed around complex surfaces (e.g., a head, an arm, an elbow, etc.).

FIG. 21AD is a top view of another layer of the triangular components ofFIGS. 21Z-21AB. In this example, the layer would be used for any layerbut the one closes to the body part. For the inner most component layer,there should be as few gaps between cells and possible, and eachimpacted cell should, as evenly as possible, distribute the force acrossits base surface area.

FIG. 21AE is a top view of another layer of the triangular components ofFIGS. 21Z-21AB. In this example, the layer would be used for any layerbut the one closes to the body part and is a complimentary layer to thelayer of FIG. 21AD.

FIG. 21AF is a top view of two overlapping layers of components of FIGS.21AD and 21AE. The first layer 91 is that of FIG. 21AD and the secondlayer 93 is that of FIG. 21 AE. When a cell of the second layer 93receives an impact force, it spreads the dampened and defused impactforce to three cells of the first layer 91.

FIG. 22 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of a portion ofanother embodiment of a layer of a body impact protection system 10. Theportion includes a 1^(st) spherical component 90 of a first layer of thesystem 10 and two spherical components 92 and 94 of a second layer ofthe system 10. Each of the spherical components 90-94 is comprised of amaterial composition that will substantially maintain a spherical shape(e.g., up to 25% compression) when an impact force 96 is exerted on thecomponents. For example, the spherical components are comprised of arubber material, a plastic material, stainless steel, aluminum, and/or acarbon fiber material. Further, the spherical components 90-94 may besolid or hollow.

In an example, the first component 90 receives an impact force 96 andcollides with the second and third components 92 and 94 at first andsecond collision angles 98 and 100, respectively. As a result of thecollision between the first and second components, the second component92 creates a 1^(st) normal force component 28-1 and a 1^(st) tangentialforce component 30-1. As a result of the collision between the first andthird components, the third component 94 creates a 2^(nd) normal forcecomponent 28-2 and a 2^(nd) tangential force component 30-2.

If each of the first and second collision angles 98 and 100 is 45degrees and the 1^(st) component 90 impacts the 2^(nd) and 3^(rd)components equally, then each of the second and third componentsreceives ½ of the impact force at an angle of 45 degrees. Accordingly,the normal force components produced by each of the second and thirdcomponents is 0.5*F*sin θ, where F is the impact force 96 and θ is thecollision angle. As such, when the first spherical shaped objectcollides with the two or more second spherical shaped objects, amulti-dimensional collision is created that dampens and defuses theimpact force 96.

Protective headgear (e.g., a helmet) was originally created to reducethe risk of skull fractures, but was not designed to reduce theincidence of concussion. Since the turn of the 21^(st) century, ahelmet's ability to mitigate the incidence of concussions has beenstudied and, as a result, improvements have been made in helmets. It isgenerally accepted in the medical field that a concussion occurs as aresult of a rapid acceleration and deceleration of the brain against theskull.

When object (e.g., another person's body part, another helmet, theground, a ball, etc.) collides with protective headgear (e.g., a helmet)it produces an impact force that results in three collisions. The firstcollision is between the object and the helmet as shown in FIG. 23A, thesecond collision is between the helmet and the skull as shown in FIG.23B, and third collision is between the skull and the brain as shown inFIG. 23C. The helmet includes an outer shell 77 and padding 79 and thehead is shown generically to include a brain 75.

FIG. 23A illustrates, in a cross section front view, of an embodiment ofa helmet at the instant it collides with an object. The average impactforce created by the object colliding with the helmet is F₁. Thereactive force of the helmet, which includes the force dampening of thepadding 79 and the surface wave dissipation of the outer shell 77, whichis designated F₃. The resulting force applied to the skull is F₂.

The average impact force F₁ of the object is calculated as m*a, where“m” is the mass of the object and “a” is the deceleration of the objectas a result of the collision. Note that if the object is the ground,then mass and deceleration are of the person wearing the helmet. Thedeceleration is calculated as v²/2*d, where “d” is impact distance(i.e., the distance the object travels from the start of the collisionuntil the collision is over), and “v” is velocity at the instant ofcollision.

FIG. 23B illustrates, in a cross section front view, the helmet to skullcollision. In this collision, the padding 79 of the helmet is compressedas a result of the impact force F₁. The force exerted on the skull F₂ isequal to the negative of the impact force F₁ minus the reactive force F₃of the helmet. In equation form, F₂=−(F₁−F₃). As such, the greater F₃,the less force F₂ that exerted on the skull.

FIG. 23C illustrates, in a cross section front view, the skull to braincollision. In this collision, the brain has a force F₅ exerted on it,which is the force exerted on the skull F₂ less the reactive force ofthe cerebrospinal fluid F₄. In equation form, F₅=−(F₂−F₄). Viasubstitution, −F₅=−(F₁−F₃)−F₄. Thus, by reducing F₂ (i.e., the force onthe skull), which is accomplished by increasing F₃ (i.e., the reactiveforce of the helmet), the force on the brain F₅ is reduced, which shouldreduce the risk of a concussion.

As previously discussed, however, current helmet testing protocols arebased on G-Force measurements taken via a drop test and/or via aprojectile test. As also previously discussed, G-Force is a ratio ofdeceleration versus earth's gravitational field. Many assumptions in thehelmet testing are made to equate G-Force to reducing the impact forceon the brain F₅. One assumption that is made in the testing is the massof the object or the player. In testing, an 11 pound headform, whichincludes an accelerometer in its core, wears the helmet as the drop testand/or projectile test are performed.

Another assumption is that the impact force F₁ and the force exerted onthe skull F₂ are average forces and evenly distributed across the entiresurface of the helmet and head, respectively. In actuality and asdiscussed with reference to FIG. 1, the impact force F₁ is received in avery small area of the helmet and a conventional helmet does little toexpand the impact area as it reaches the skull. Thus, even if theG-Force measurements are in acceptable ranges and F₂ seems relativelymild, a concussion can still result of the skull impact area is small(e.g., less than a few square inches) and the risk for concussionincreases as the skull impact area decreases.

FIG. 23D is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a helmet 115 that includes a body impact protection system 10. Ingeneral, the helmet 115 includes an outer layer, an inner layer, and animpact force dampening and defusing structure. The outer layer includesa first material composition and has a geometric shape to form anexterior surface of the helmet. The inner layer includes a secondmaterial composition and, when the helmet is worn, the inner layer isadjacent to a head. In an embodiment, the outer layer includes a rubbermaterial and/or a plastic material and the inner layer includes a foammaterial and/or a gel material.

The impact force dampening and defusing structure is positioned betweenthe inner layer and the outer layer. It includes a plurality ofcomponents arranged into more or more layers. The layer(s) of componentsfunction to reduce pressure on the head from a collision with an object.For example, the collision with the object creates an impact force onthe outer layer of the helmet in a given area (e.g., a helmet impactarea). Layer by layer, the components dampen the impact force anddiffuse it over a larger and larger area. Thus, when the impact forcereaches the head, it has been substantially reduced and spread out overa larger area creating a low impact pressure to substantially reducingthe risk of concussion and the severity of a concussion if one didoccur.

FIG. 23E is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of a portion ofan embodiment of a helmet 115 that includes a force dampening anddefusing outer shell 117, force dampening and defusing layers 121,dampening viscous layers 123, and a padding layer 125. The dampening anddefusing layers 121 includes four layers of cells, or components 16. Thedampening viscous layers 123 include gel and/or padding that furtherdampens the impact force in both the linear direction and rotationaldirection as will be discussed in greater detail with reference to FIGS.23F and 23G. The force dampening and defusing outer shell 117 includes aplurality of cells, or components 16, that are laminated, encased, orimpregnated with a rubber material, a plastic material, and/or othermaterial to create a smooth, but compressible surface.

The cells of the outer shell 117 and the cells of the force dampeningand defusing layers 121 convert the external impact force, which isexerted on the helmet in an outer surface impact area 119, into asubstantially reduced impact force spread out over a much larger area(i.e., the body impact area 127). The impact force is further reduced bythe dampening viscous layers 123.

As an example, the side wall angle θ for the cells of each layer is 45degrees, the mass of the player wearing the helmet is 200 pounds, istraveling at 16 miles per hour (mph), and collides head first with anobject and has an impact distance of 1.25 inches. Further, the dampeningfactor of each layer of the viscous layers is 0.667 and the dampeningfactor of the padding layer is 0.5. From these parameters,F₂=(0.707)⁵*F₁*(0.667)⁽⁵⁻¹⁾*0.5=0.017*F₁.

The 200-pound player creates a G-Force of 82 G's, which is borderlineconcussion level based on research that suggests a concussion infootball can occur from an impact that produces a G-Force of 100g's+/−30 g's. This equates to an external impact force F₁ of 16.4Kforce-pounds and, as result of the dampening of the helmet, creates ahead impact force F₂ of about 290 force-pounds. With a conventionalhelmet that does not increase the impact area, an impact area of 0.375square inches yields an impact pressure of 770 PSI. In contrast, thehelmet with the dampening and defusing system 10, produces an impactpressure of about 36 PSI. 36 PSI presents substantially less risk of aninjury than 770 PSI, even though both have the same G-Force measurementsand head impact force.

FIG. 23F is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of a portion ofan embodiment of a helmet of FIGS. 23D and 23E. In this illustration,the helmet is receiving an angular impact force. In conventionalhelmets, this creates a rotational force that studies suggest increasethe risk of injury.

FIG. 23G is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of the portion ofthe helmet of FIG. 23F. In this illustration, the viscous layers 123slide along the force dampening and defusing layers 121 to dampen theangular and rotational forces produced by the angular impact force.

FIG. 24A is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a chest protector 135 that includes a body impact protection system10. The chest protector 135 may be used for baseball, football practice,hockey, motor-cross, mountain bicycling, riot gear, combat gear, and/orother applications where the chest needs to be protected from impactingobjects. Further, the materials and implementation of the body impactprotection system 10 create flexible chest protector 135 that allow forform fitting and movement with the person wearing the chest protector.

In general, the chest protector 135 includes an outer layer, an innerlayer, and an impact force dampening and defusing structure. The outerlayer includes a first material composition and has a geometric shape toconform to the shape of a human torso. The inner layer includes a secondmaterial composition and, when the chest protector is worn, the innerlayer is adjacent to the chest. In an embodiment, each of the innerlayer and the outer layer includes a rubber material, a foam material, apadding material, a plastic material, a gel material, a carbon fibermaterial, a cloth material, a polyester material, a moisture absorbingmaterial, a moisture wicking material, and/or a silicon material. In anembodiment, the first and second material compositions are the same. Inanother embodiment, the first and second material compositions aredifferent.

The impact force dampening and defusing structure 137 is positionedbetween the inner layer and the outer layer. It includes a plurality ofcomponents arranged into more or more layers. The layer(s) of componentsfunction to reduce pressure on the chest from a collision with anobject. For example, the collision with the object creates an impactforce on the outer layer of the chest protector in a given area (e.g., asystem impact area). Layer by layer, the components dampen the impactforce and diffuse it over a larger and larger area. Thus, when theimpact force reaches the chest, it has been substantially reduced andspread out over a larger area creating a low impact pressure tosubstantially reducing the risk of injury and the severity of an injuryif one did occur.

FIG. 24B is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a chest protector 135 that includes a vest 141 and a plurality ofdampening and defusing sheets 139. A dampening and defusing sheet 139includes one or more component layers and may further include the innerlayer and/or the outer layer. Further, the sheet 139 may have a varietyof top or front view perimeter shapes (a front view is the shown thepresent figure). Still further, each dampening and defusing sheet 139has an overall width and an overall height, where the overall width isin the range of 1 inch to 10 inches or more and the overall height is inthe range of 1 inch to 8 inches or more.

The vest 141 has a shape corresponding to the torso and is comprised ofa foam material, a padding material, a cloth material, a polyestermaterial, a moisture absorbing material, and/or a moisture wickingmaterial. The vest 141 includes a plurality of receptacles for receivingthe plurality of dampening and defusing sheets 139. For example, thevest 141 includes a plurality of re-sealable pockets for receiving thesheets 139. In another example, the vest 141 includes pockets that, oncethe sheets are inserted, are sealed.

The size and positioning of the sheets 139 are on the vest 141 may varybased on the application of the chest protector 135. Further, the outerlayer of the sheets may include a bullet-proof material when the chestprotector is used in combat or as riot gear. Still further, the areaaround the heart may include a special sheet that includes morecomponent layers than other sheets, may include a different outer layerthan other sheets, and/or may include a different inner layer than othersheets to provide more protection for the heart than other parts of thetorso.

FIG. 25 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a knee protection apparatus 151 that includes an outer layer 153, aninner layer 155, and a force dampening and defusing structure 157. Theouter layer 153 includes a first material composition and has anexterior surface that includes a substantially planer area. The firstmaterial composition includes a rubber material, a foam material, apadding material, a plastic material, a gel material, a carbon fibermaterial, and/or a silicon material.

The inner layer 155 includes a second material composition and has ashape corresponding to the shape of a knee. The second materialcomposition includes a rubber material, a foam material, a paddingmaterial, a plastic material, a gel material, a cloth material, apolyester material, a moisture absorbing material, a moisture wickingmaterial, and/or a silicon material. Note that the inner layer isadjacent to the knee when the knee protection apparatus 151 is worn.

The force dampening and defusing structure 157 is positioned between theinner layer 155 and the outer layer 153. From the front and side views,the force dampening and defusing structure 157 has a shape correspondingto a difference between the shapes of the inner and outer layers. Inparticular, the structure 157 includes components 16 that are arrangedto reduce pressure on the knee when a force is applied to the outerlayer. As shown, to achieve the desired shape of the structure 157, somecomponents are longer than others.

The substantially planar area of the outer layer 153 allows the kneeprotection apparatus to have a large impact area with the ground orother surface on which the knee protection apparatus will be used. Asshown in FIG. 27, the planar area 161 has, from a front viewperspective, a rectangular shape, but could have a different polygonalshape. In the cross-section view the player area 161 provides a flatsurface on which to kneel. As is further shown, the outer layer 153 alsoincludes a concave area 163 that at least partially encompassing thesubstantially planer area.

FIG. 26 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a knee protection apparatus 151 that includes an outerlayer 153, an inner layer 155, a multi-layered force dampening anddefusing structure 157, and an intermediate layer 159. The intermediatelayer 159 includes a third material composition that includes a rubbermaterial, a foam material, a padding material, a plastic material, a gelmaterial, a carbon fiber material, and/or a silicon material.

The multi-layer force dampening and defusing structure 157 includes onelayer of components between the inner layer 155 and the intermediatelayer 159 and includes a second layer of components between theintermediate layer 159 and the outer layer 153. From the front and sideviews, the first layer of components has a shape corresponding to adifference between the shapes of the inner and intermediate layers. Inparticular, the first layer of components 157 includes components 16that are arranged to reduce pressure and where some components arelonger than others.

The second layer of components includes that are arranged to furtherreduce pressure and the components are of the same size. Note that theouter layer 153 may have a configuration as described with reference toFIG. 27.

FIG. 28 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a body limb protection apparatus 165 that includes an outer layer171, an inner layer 169, and a force dampening and defusing structure173 that includes one or more component layers. The outer layer 171including a first material composition and has an exterior surface thatincludes a substantially planer area 167.

The inner layer 169 includes a second material composition and has ashape corresponding to a body limb portion 175 (e.g., knee, shin, elbow,ankle, forearm, upper arm, thigh, calf, etc.). When the apparatus 165 isworn on the body limb portion, the inner layer 169 is adjacent to thebody limb portion.

The force dampening and defusing structure 173 is positioned between theinner layer 169 and the outer layer 171 and includes a plurality oflayers of components. For an example of multiple component layers, aninner layer, and an outer layer, refer to FIG. 15. The apparatus 165functions to reduce pressure on the body limb portion when a force isapplied from an impacting object (e.g., a baseball, a helmet, theground, etc.). On a layer by layer basis, the apparatus dampens anddefuses the impact force such that, by the time it reaches the bodypart, the impact force is substantially attenuated and distributed overa large area.

FIGS. 29A and 29B are side and top views of a layer of components 16arranged in a pattern 181 to produce a layer of an impact forcedampening and defusing structure. In this embodiment, the componentshave a flat-top pyramid shape and are arranged in a pattern 181 of rowsand columns. A component 16, from the side view of FIG. 29A, includesangled side walls, a top surface area (e.g., away from the body part), abase surface area (e.g., towards the body part), and a distance “d” 74.The distance “d” is the distance between the top surface area and thebase surface area and ranges from 1/32 of an inch to multiple inchesdepending on the application of the body impact protection system. Theangled side walls are at an angle of θ with respect to the horizontalaxis, where the angle is in the range of 25 degrees to 89 degrees.Depending on the angle θ and the distance “d”, the base surface area istwo or more times larger than the top surface area, where the topsurface area is 1/256 square inches (e.g., 1/16 by 1/16) to tens ofsquare inches depending on the application of the body impact protectionsystem.

The components are placed on an inner or intermediate layer that isflexible and allows each cell to move independently. This allows sheetsof layers to be flexible and form fitting to a particular body part.Such layers of components may be molded, casted, printed, etc. asindividual pieces and then adhered to the supporting layer.Alternatively, a layer of components is produced via or molding,casting, printing, etc. as a single piece.

FIG. 30 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an embodimentof a force defusing inert 185 for use in a variety of impact protectiongear (e.g., as thigh pads, as shoulder padding, as rib padding, as shinpadding, as elbow padding, etc.). The insert includes one or more layersof components 16, an outer layer 171, an inner layer 169, and anencasing 191. The one or more layers of components 16, an outer layer171, an inner layer 169 are implemented in accordance with one or moreembodiments previously discussed and/or as subsequently discussed. Notethat the outer layer is on the impact receiving side 187 of the insert185 and the inner layer 169 is on the impact defusing side 189.

The encasing 191 houses the one or more layers of components 16, anouter layer 171, an inner layer 169 and is comprised of one or morematerials that are flexible, provides additional padding, are moisturewicking, and/or are moisture absorbent. For example, the encasing 191 iscomprised of a foam material, a padding material, a gel material, acloth material, a polyester material, a moisture absorbing material,and/or a moisture wicking material.

FIG. 31 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing inert 185 that is similar to the one ofFIG. 30 with the addition of a second component layer, an intermediatelayer 195, and a padding layer 193. The two layers of components 16, theouter layer 171, the inner layer 169, the intermediate layer 195, andthe padding layer 193 are implemented in accordance with one or moreembodiments previously discussed and/or as subsequently discussed.

FIG. 32 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing inert 185 that includes eight layers ofcomponents 16, seven intermediate layers 195, the outer layer 171, theinner layer 169, and the encasing 191. The various elements of thisinsert 185 are implemented in accordance with one or more embodimentspreviously discussed and/or as subsequently discussed.

FIG. 33 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing inert 185 that includes a plurality oflayers of components 16 (five in this example, but could be more orless), an inner layer 169, an outer layer 171, and an encasing 191. Inthis embodiment, the layers of components are in direct contact witheach other (i.e., no intermediate layers). The various elements of thisinsert 185 are implemented in accordance with one or more embodimentspreviously discussed and/or as subsequently discussed.

FIGS. 34 and 35 are side and front views of another embodiment of twoforce defusing layers for use in an impact protection system. The firstlayer includes 1^(st) spherical objects 110 and the second layerincludes 2^(nd) spherical objects 112. Each layer is arranged in anarray that, from layer to layer, is complimentary. Each of the sphericalobjects 110-112 is comprised of a material composition that willsubstantially maintain a spherical shape (e.g., up to 25% compression)when an impact force is exerted on the objects. For example, thespherical objects are comprised of a rubber material, a plasticmaterial, stainless steel, aluminum, and/or a carbon fiber material.Further, the spherical objects 110-112 may be solid or hollow. Stillfurther, the material composition is such that, as a result thecollision, the magnitude of the impact force is reduced.

In an example, one or more objects of the first spherical objects 110receives an impact force and collides with two or more objects of thesecond spherical objects 112 at collision angles, respectively. As aresult of the collision between spherical objects of the first andsecond spherical objects 110 and 112, each of the impact sphericalobjects of the second spherical objects 112 92 creates a normal forcecomponent and a tangential force component.

If each of the first and second collision angles is 45 degrees and thespherical object of the first spherical objects 110 impacts the two ormore objects of the second spherical objects 112 equally, then each ofthe objects in the second spherical objects receives an equal portion ofthe impact force at an angle of 45 degrees. Accordingly, the normalforce components produced by each of the impacted spherical objects ofthe second spherical objects 112 is 1/x*F*sin θ, where F is the impactforce, x is the number objects in the second layer of spherical objectsthat are impacted, and θ is the collision angle.

FIG. 36 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem that includes the first and second layers of spherical objects ofFIGS. 34 and 35 and further includes an inner padding layer 116 and anouter layer 114. Note that the first spherical objects 110 and thesecond spherical objects 112 are of substantially identical sphericalshapes, where the spherical shapes include a sphere, an ellipsoid,and/or a spheroid.

The outer shell 114 is juxtaposed to the first layer of sphericalobjects 110 and is comprised of a material as used for other outerlayers as described herein. The inner padding layer 116 is juxtaposed tothe second layer of spherical objects 112 and is towards the body partbeing protected. The inner padding layer 116 is comprised on a materialcomposition that includes a rubber material, a foam material, a paddingmaterial, a gel material, a cloth material, a polyester material, amoisture absorbing material, and/or a moisture wicking material.

FIG. 37 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem that is similar to one of FIG. 36 with the addition of a thirdlayer of spherical objects 118. A spherical object of the third layer118 has a sphere shape, an ellipse shape, and/or a spheroid shape. Thespherical object is comprised of a rubber material, a plastic material,stainless steel, aluminum, and/or a carbon fiber material. Further, thethird spherical objects 118 may be solid or hollow. Still further, thematerial composition of the third spherical object is such that, as aresult the collision, the magnitude of the impact force is reduced.

FIG. 38 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem that is similar to one of FIG. 36 with the addition of a fillmaterial 120. The fill material 120 at least partially encases at leastsome of the first spherical objects 110 and at least some of the secondspherical shaped objects 112. The fill material has a force dampeningproperty (e.g., a force dampening ratio of 0.5 to 0.95) and is comprisedof a rubber material, a foam material, a padding material, and/or a gelmaterial.

FIG. 39 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem that is similar to one of FIG. 38 with the addition of a paddinglayer 122. The padding layer 122 force dampening property (e.g., a forcedampening ratio of 0.5 to 0.95) and is comprised of a rubber material, afoam material, a padding material, and/or a gel material.

FIG. 40 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of an example ofan impact protection system that includes a plurality of componentlayers 50 54 60-64, an outer layer 24, an inner layer 12, and aplurality of intermediate layers 52 66-70. While the present exampleshows 5 component layers and 4 intermediate layers, the system couldhave more or less component layers and/or more or less intermediatelayers.

Each component layer 50 54 60-64 includes a first layer of sphericalobjects 110 and a second layer of spherical objects 112 as describedwith reference to FIGS. 34 and 35. When a force 96 impacts the outerlayer, the component layers, on a layer by layer basis dampens anddefuses the impact force 96. The intermediate layers 52 66-70 mayfurther reduce the impact force such that, by the time the impactreaches the body part, it is substantially attenuated and spread outover a large area. The gray shaded spheres depict the diffusing of theimpact force over a large and larger area with each layer.

FIG. 41 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of another exampleof force diffusion via force defusing layers for use in an impactprotection system, which is similar to the one of FIG. 40 with thesubtraction of the intermediate layers. As, each layer of sphericalobjects are in direct contact with the next layer. The gray shadedspheres depict the diffusing of the impact force 96 over a large andlarger area with each layer such that, by the time it reaches the innerlayer 12, it has been spread out over a large area.

FIG. 42 is a schematic block diagram, in a side view, of anotherembodiment of a force defusing layers for use in an impact protectionsystem that includes a first component layer 50, a second componentlayer 54, an intermediate layer 52, and an inner padding layer 116. Thefirst component layer 50 includes a first layer of spherical objects 110and a second layer of spherical objects 112. The second component layer54 also includes a first layer of spherical objects and a second layerof spherical objects, but are larger than the first and second layerspherical objects 110 and 112.

FIGS. 43A-43C are schematic block diagrams, in a side view, of examplesof impact force dampening and diffusion via force defusing layers of animpact protection system. FIG. 43A depicts the embodiment of FIG. 38just prior to impact. FIG. 43B illustrates the embodiment of FIG. 38having a rigid outer shell 114 that bows a little due to the impactforce. Even though the outer shell does not bow much, a majority of theimpact force is still applied to the spheres closest to the impact area.FIG. 43C illustrates the embodiment of FIG. 38 having a softer outershell 114 bows due to the impact force. With the bowing the outer shell114, the impact force is applied to the spheres within the impact area.

FIGS. 44 and 45 are top and side views of another embodiment of a forcedefusing layers for use in an impact protection system. In thisembodiment, spherical objects or components are grouped to produce anindividual component group. Each component group is a separate piecethat can be individually places to create various patterns and/orconfigurations. The groups 130 can be configured into layers 132, whichcan be stacked to create further patterns for the protection system.

The impact protection system described herein has been directed towardsthe use of protecting body parts from injury due to an impact with anobject. The impact protection system works equally well to protect partsof animals from an impacting object. The impact protection systemfurther works to inanimate things from impacting objects, from beingdropped during shipping, etc.

It is noted that terminologies as may be used herein such as bit stream,stream, signal sequence, etc. (or their equivalents) have been usedinterchangeably to describe digital information whose contentcorresponds to any of a number of desired types (e.g., data, video,speech, audio, etc. any of which may generally be referred to as‘data’).

As may be used herein, the terms “substantially” and “approximately”provides an industry-accepted tolerance for its corresponding termand/or relativity between items. Such an industry-accepted toleranceranges from less than one percent to fifty percent and corresponds to,but is not limited to, component values, integrated circuit processvariations, temperature variations, rise and fall times, and/or thermalnoise. Such relativity between items ranges from a difference of a fewpercent to magnitude differences. As may also be used herein, theterm(s) “configured to”, “operably coupled to”, “coupled to”, and/or“coupling” includes direct coupling between items and/or indirectcoupling between items via an intervening item (e.g., an item includes,but is not limited to, a component, an element, a circuit, and/or amodule) where, for an example of indirect coupling, the intervening itemdoes not modify the information of a signal but may adjust its currentlevel, voltage level, and/or power level. As may further be used herein,inferred coupling (i.e., where one element is coupled to another elementby inference) includes direct and indirect coupling between two items inthe same manner as “coupled to”. As may even further be used herein, theterm “configured to”, “operable to”, “coupled to”, or “operably coupledto” indicates that an item includes one or more of power connections,input(s), output(s), etc., to perform, when activated, one or more itscorresponding functions and may further include inferred coupling to oneor more other items. As may still further be used herein, the term“associated with”, includes direct and/or indirect coupling of separateitems and/or one item being embedded within another item.

As may be used herein, the term “compares favorably”, indicates that acomparison between two or more items, signals, etc., provides a desiredrelationship. For example, when the desired relationship is that signal1 has a greater magnitude than signal 2, a favorable comparison may beachieved when the magnitude of signal 1 is greater than that of signal 2or when the magnitude of signal 2 is less than that of signal 1. As maybe used herein, the term “compares unfavorably”, indicates that acomparison between two or more items, signals, etc., fails to providethe desired relationship.

One or more embodiments have been described above with the aid of methodsteps illustrating the performance of specified functions andrelationships thereof. The boundaries and sequence of these functionalbuilding blocks and method steps have been arbitrarily defined hereinfor convenience of description. Alternate boundaries and sequences canbe defined so long as the specified functions and relationships areappropriately performed. Any such alternate boundaries or sequences arethus within the scope and spirit of the claims. Further, the boundariesof these functional building blocks have been arbitrarily defined forconvenience of description. Alternate boundaries could be defined aslong as the certain significant functions are appropriately performed.Similarly, flow diagram blocks may also have been arbitrarily definedherein to illustrate certain significant functionality.

The one or more embodiments are used herein to illustrate one or moreaspects, one or more features, one or more concepts, and/or one or moreexamples. A physical embodiment of an apparatus, an article ofmanufacture, a machine, and/or of a process may include one or more ofthe aspects, features, concepts, examples, etc. described with referenceto one or more of the embodiments discussed herein. Further, from figureto figure, the embodiments may incorporate the same or similarly namedfunctions, steps, modules, etc. that may use the same or differentreference numbers and, as such, the functions, steps, modules, etc. maybe the same or similar functions, steps, modules, etc. or differentones.

While particular combinations of various functions and features of theone or more embodiments have been expressly described herein, othercombinations of these features and functions are likewise possible. Thepresent disclosure is not limited by the particular examples disclosedherein and expressly incorporates these other combinations.

What is claimed is:
 1. An impact force dampening and defusing structurecomprises: a plurality of components arranged in a grid array, wherein acomponent of the plurality of components has a three-dimensionalgeometric shape that includes an impact receiving surface area and animpact defusing surface area, wherein the impact defusing surface areais larger than, and a distance “d” from, the impact receiving surfacearea, and wherein, when an impact force strikes the impact receivingsurface area of the component and the impact force dampening anddefusing structure is in position to protect a body part, the componentsubstantially retains the three-dimensional geometric shape to reducepressure on the body part based on the distance “d”, the impactreceiving surface area, and the impact defusing surface area.
 2. Theimpact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 1 furthercomprises: an impact surface layer juxtaposed to the impact receivingsurface area of the plurality of components; and an impact defusingsurface layer juxtaposed to the impact defusing surface area of theplurality of components.
 3. The impact force dampening and defusingstructure of claim 1, wherein the three-dimensional geometric shape ofthe component comprises: a base having a two-dimensional shape andhaving a base perimeter; a top having a corresponding two-dimensionalshape and having a top perimeter, wherein the base perimeter is largerthan the top perimeter; and a side structure having a shapecorresponding to the two-dimensional shape of the base and thecorresponding two-dimensional shape of the top over the distance “d”,and wherein the top substantially provides to the impact receiving areaand the base substantially provides the impact defusing area.
 4. Theimpact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 3, wherein eachof the two-dimensional shape and the corresponding two-dimensional shapecomprises one of: a circle; an ellipse; an oval; a square; a rectangle;a pentagon; a hexagon; an octagon; and a triangle.
 5. The impact forcedampening and defusing structure of claim 3, wherein the side structurecomprises: a thickness such that the component includes an outer shelland an interior volume.
 6. The impact force dampening and defusingstructure of claim 5 further comprises: the interior volume filled withone or more of: air, a gel, an oil, rubber, silicon, and foam.
 7. Theimpact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 1 furthercomprises: the plurality of components arranged in a single layer gridarray.
 8. The impact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 1,wherein the material composition comprises one or more of: a rubbermaterial; a foam material; a padding material; a plastic material; a gelmaterial; a carbon fiber material; a cloth material; a polyestermaterial; a moisture absorbing material; a moisture wicking material;and a silicon material.
 9. The impact force dampening and defusingstructure of claim 1 further comprises: a second component of theplurality of components has a second three-dimensional geometric shapethat includes a second impact receiving surface area and a second impactdefusing surface area, wherein the second impact defusing surface areais larger than the second impact receiving surface area, and wherein,when at least a portion of the impact force strikes the second impactreceiving surface area of the second component and the impact forcedampening and defusing structure is in position to protect the bodypart, the second component substantially retains the secondthree-dimensional geometric shape to reduce pressure on the body partbased on the second impact receiving surface area, and the second impactdefusing surface area.
 10. An impact force dampening and defusingstructure comprises: a first plurality of components arranged in a firstgrid array forming a first layer; a second plurality of componentsarranged in a second grid array forming a second layer, wherein thesecond grid array is at least partially complimentary to the first gridarray for defusing an impact force; and an intermediate layer betweenthe first and second plurality of components, wherein a first componentof the first plurality of components has a three-dimensional geometricshape that includes an impact receiving surface area and an impactdefusing surface area, wherein the impact defusing surface area islarger than, and a distance “d” from, the impact receiving surface area,and wherein, when at least a portion of an impact force strikes theimpact receiving surface area of the first component and the impactforce dampening and defusing structure is in position to protect a bodypart, the first component substantially retains the three-dimensionalgeometric shape to reduce pressure on the body part based on thedistance “d”, the impact receiving surface area, and the impact defusingsurface area.
 11. The impact force dampening and defusing structure ofclaim 10 further comprises: a second component of the second pluralityof components has a second three-dimensional geometric shape thatincludes a second impact receiving surface area and a second impactdefusing surface area, wherein the second impact defusing surface areais larger than, and a second distance “d2” from, the second impactreceiving surface area, and wherein, when at least a remaining portionof the impact force strikes the second impact receiving surface area ofthe second component via the impact defusing surface of the firstcomponent and the intermediate layer, the second component substantiallyretains the second three-dimensional geometric shape to reduce pressureon the body part based on the second distance “d2”, the second impactreceiving surface area, and the second impact defusing surface area. 12.The impact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 10 furthercomprises: an impact surface layer juxtaposed to the impact receivingsurface area of the first plurality of components; and an impactdefusing surface layer juxtaposed to the impact defusing surface area ofthe second plurality of components.
 13. The impact force dampening anddefusing structure of claim 10, wherein the three-dimensional geometricshape of the component comprises: a base having a two-dimensional shapeand having a base perimeter; a top having a correspondingtwo-dimensional shape and having a top perimeter, wherein the baseperimeter is larger than the top perimeter; and a side structure havinga shape corresponding to the two-dimensional shape of the base and thecorresponding two-dimensional shape of the top over the distance “d”,and wherein the top substantially provides to the impact receiving areaand the base substantially provides the impact defusing area.
 14. Theimpact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 13, wherein eachof the two-dimensional shape and the corresponding two-dimensional shapecomprises one of: a circle; an ellipse; an oval; a square; a rectangle;a pentagon; a hexagon; an octagon; and a triangle.
 15. The impact forcedampening and defusing structure of claim 13, wherein the side structurecomprises: a thickness such that the component includes an outer shelland an interior volume.
 16. The impact force dampening and defusingstructure of claim 15 further comprises: the interior volume filled withone or more of: air, a gel, an oil, rubber, silicon, and foam.
 17. Theimpact force dampening and defusing structure of claim 10, wherein thematerial composition comprises one or more of: a rubber material; a foammaterial; a padding material; a plastic material; a gel material; acarbon fiber material; a cloth material; a polyester material; amoisture absorbing material; a moisture wicking material; and a siliconmaterial.
 18. The impact force dampening and defusing structure of claim10 further comprises: a second component of the first plurality ofcomponents has a second three-dimensional geometric shape that includesa second impact receiving surface area and a second impact defusingsurface area, wherein the second impact defusing surface area is largerthan the second impact receiving surface area, and wherein, when atleast a portion of the impact force strikes the second impact receivingsurface area of the second component and the impact force dampening anddefusing structure is in position to protect the body part, the secondcomponent substantially retains the second three-dimensional geometricshape to reduce pressure on the body part based on the second impactreceiving surface area, and the second impact defusing surface area.